A Green Lantern is an officer of the intergalactic police force known as the Green Lantern Corps, who have the ability to overcome great fear with the might of willpower. They possess power rings capable of creating constructs characterized by their will and strength to use it. Each Green Lantern is given a Sector of the Universe to protect and it is their priority to suppress any threat against their sector.

What is a Green Lantern?

A Green Lantern is a member of an elite intergalactic police force organized to promote justice and order throughout the universe, specifically the sector they are chosen to protect. They protect and serve as part of the Green Lantern Corps formed by the Guardians of the Universe, an extraterrestrial race known as Oans. A Corps member is equipped with an item that is regarded as one of the most powerful weapons in the DC Universe, called a Green Power Ring. The Power Ring enables its bearer to manifest their thoughts into hard-light constructs and other various properties only limited by the ring's amount of power and the user's willpower and imagination. It chooses the individual and successor attributed to overcoming the great fear through the might of willpower. The Power Ring is based on advanced technology rather than having its power magically derived, as of the one of Alan Scott.

The ring is primarily used for anti-gravity, to unleash torrents of energy, translate alien dialects and to create hard-light constructs of any shape or complexity. Though, in the past, it has been unable to affect yellow-colored objects, this impurity has been overridden by Hal Jordan's power of will.

Oath of the Green Lantern

Though not necessary, many Green Lanterns recite an oath while re-charging their Green Power Ring. Some believe it aids them in re-affirming their strength of will. Recitation of the Oath takes an approximate equal amount of time required to recharge the ring. The most common oath used is as follows:

In brightest day,

In blackest night,

No evil shall escape my sight,

Let those who worship evil's might,

Beware my power...Green Lantern's light!

More Green Lantern Oaths

However, other Green Lanterns have recited and bid by their own oaths in sense of respect and honor of what they stand for. Such examples are below:

The Green Lanterns of Earth

While the title of Green Lantern is bestowed upon all full-fledged members of the Green Lantern Corps, there are several superheroes associated with Earth designated to serving as protectors of Space Sector 2814 that make a great impact within the DC Universe.

Alan Scott

Alan Scott was the original Green Lantern, and unlike the others his title had nothing to do with the Corps. His powers are derived from a magical artifact called the Starheart rather than the advanced technology that makes up the Power Ring. Alan originally came from a parallel version of Earth known as Earth-2 and is the father of Jade.

Hal Jordan

The first Green Lantern of DC's mainstream continuity and initially the first human of Earth to be apart of the Green Lantern Corps, Hal Jordan was given his power ring by the dying Lantern, Abin Sur when his spaceship crash-landed on Earth. He would be the first human Green Lantern of Space Sector 2814. His first appearance was in Showcase #22 in 1959. Hal stands alongside the greatest Green Lanterns in the DC Universe, as he's one of the few to have led out courageous duties that have put a great impact into saving the world. However, due to his rebellious doings and partnering up with other ring-bearers of various emotional spectrums, the Guardians of the Universe now believe he's one of the most dangerous of any Green Lantern. He has since been removed from the corps and is now wielding a green power ring created by Thaal Sinestro.

Guy Gardner

When Abin Sur's spaceship crash-landed on Earth his power ring logged Guy Gardner as a "backup" Green Lantern of Earth having been farther away from the crash site then Hal Jordan was. Guy is the more arrogant of the humans and became a full-fledged Green Lantern after John Stewart. Guy Gardner is now a part of the Honor Guard of the Green Lantern Corps.

Kyle Rayner

Kyle Rayner was selected by Ganthet to be the Green Lantern of Earth after Hal Jordan was infected by the fear entity called Parallax. He was once the last existing Green Lantern and the main factor into rebuilding both the Corps and Guardians of the Universe. For a short time he played the role of Ion, but has since became Honor Guard of the Green Lantern Corps. Kyle Rayner is commonly referred to as the Torchbearer of the Green Lantern Corps.

Simon Baz

Simon Baz is a current officer of sector 2814 and guardian of Hal Jordan's family.

Other Notable Lanterns

Weapons

Each member of the Green Lantern Corps is located by a green power ring for individuals that possesses strong willpower, whom can overcome great fear. The Green Power Ring is able to perform a number of abilities which can be found here: Green Power Ring.

Radiation: Besides light-based radiation used to create the energy constructs associated with a Green Lantern, the ring can simulate various forms of radiation. One example of this is the ability to simulate the radiation of Green Kryptonite, a form of radiation that is harmful to Superman. However, this ability is no longer valid and has been retconned.

Time travel: The ring allows the wielder the ability to travel through time, though the process requires great willpower.

Weaknesses

Mental Incapacitation: The ring cannot be wielded correctly if the wearer is under the influence of drugs or if there is an involvement of neural interference.

Yellow Impurity: In the beginning the Green Ring was vulnerable to the color yellow. It was unable to defend against attacks from wielders of the Sinestro Corps as well. This weakness however has now be changed and can be overcome by veterans who have the ability to face the greatest of fear. Hal Jordan was of the first of the Green Lanterns to show that this weakness could be overpowered.

Recharge: The Ring previously had to be recharged every 24 hours or when it has been depleted of energy. This can be accomplished if the bearer of the ring recites an oath into his power lantern while holding the ring directly at the light. However, the power ring now only needs to be recharged when it runs out of energy. Sinestro stated to Hal that it was possible for a Green Lantern to store his/her battery in a Pocket Universe and take it with them wherever they went, but so far Hal has not displayed the ability to do this.

Red Lantern Corps. Bearers of the Red Power Ring have the ability to drain a Green Power Ring of its energy. The ring of a Blue Lantern, however has the ability to charge a Green Lantern Ring or negate this negative effect. Blue Lanterns rings also have the ability to purge the negative effects that a Red Lanterns Ring can cause upon the wielder of a Green Lantern Ring.

(Previous Weaknesses)

Ability to Kill: One of the main weaknesses of the Power Rings, that greatly disturbed Sinestro, was the fact that the bearers of the Green Lantern Ring were unable to kill. Recently however, this restriction on the rings has been lifted, but murder is still against the law of the GL Corps. This restriction was overthrown by the Guardians of the Universe during the Sinestro Corps War, in the time of desperation.

Other Media

In the animated movie called Batman: The Dark Knight we see three comic books or graphic novels on the newsstand that where DC Comics. They were Swamp Thing, V For Vendetta and Green Lantern in the background of the movie in a convenience store.

Green Lanterns where made in heroclixs and they made a movie set based on the film that did not do very well. All the Green Lanterns where made in the pack set with there powers and there cards in 2011 when the film was announced to theaters. The pack was made to support the film.